The Sky City Building

The Sky City Building in Changsha, China looks great on paper, and if built could revolutionize skyscraper and city design, resetting the rules for sustainable living. However city planners, engineers and architects have voiced their reservations.

The
Very, Very Tall Building!

The Sky City Building, is supposed to be 838m tall; the tallest
in the world, have housing for over 30,000 citizens, endless
facilities, a sustainable design and a construction schedule of
only 3 months! But the building which was originally
proposed to be completed by June 2013 has experienced
multiple delays and is surrounded in controversy.

China is undergoing vast urbanization (See DAC Sustainable
Cities article
KINA: URBANISERING I DET EKSTREME) and with it comes a huge
demand for skyscrapers. In the next 5 years the country will have
60 skyscrapers over 300m; this is currently as many as the rest of
the world combined. The Sky City building will be at the peak of
this number. It will outreach the Burj Kahlifa in Dubai by 10m to
become the world's tallest building and a statement of intent from
the Chinese government.

Photo: Broad Sustianable Buildings

The building will boast 202 floors, with 90% of materials
pre-fabricated off site and then assembled in 90 days, a feat of
construction never seen before. The mass of floor space, over 1
million m², will largely be for residential purposes; a planned
5000 residential properties will be able to accommodate over 30,000
citizens. Sky City will also offer a 1000 room hotel, 5 schools,
vast office and retail space, basketball and tennis courts as well
as 4 helipads. The citizens and visitors will be transported by 104
high speed elevators, taking a number of minutes to get from top to
bottom.

The
designers, Broad Sustainable Buildings (BSB) propose
sustainability as one of the highest priorities for the Sky City
building. The company has planned a number of impressive design
features including, 20cm thermal insulation; saving 70% heat loss
compared to conventional buildings, 4 paned glass windows, external
solar shading, fresh air heat recovery and a gas fired cooling,
heating and power system with a HVAC energy consumption of
90kWh/m². There will also be a 100% fresh air ventilation system
with a 3 stage filter system meaning the air will be 20 times
cleaner inside than outside! The high density, mixed use
functionality of the building and an absence of conventional
transport modes helps increase the sustainability factor of Sky
City in its operational lifetime. The building also claims to
preserve 200 hectares of surrounding land in addition to the 56 sky
parks and 8000m² of open sky gardens. A vast 86,400m² vertical
organic farm will also be constructed. And for those not fond of
elevators there will be a 10km 'street' connecting the 1stand 170thfloor!

Photo: Broad Sustainable Buildings

The numbers are impressive but why so much
criticism?

Criticism of the building has been widespread throughout China
and the wider planning and architectural communities. This is not
new for groundbreaking buildings but some think the ability of BSB;
a company which has not yet constructed a building over 30 stories,
has bitten off more than it can chew! Skepticism has been fuelled
by concerns over issues such as structural integrity, fire safety,
evacuation plans and funding. The general motivations of BSB's
Group Chairman Zhang Yue, an air conditioning tycoon, have also
come under the spotlight. Such concerns have coincided with local
government building permit delays, suggesting uncertainty in local
planning offices. Since the groundbreaking ceremony which took
place in July 2013 there has been little progress in preparing the
foundations for Sky City.

The story is just beginning

Regardless of the current situation, the Sky City building with
its ambitious outlook for city life has opened the debate of how
megacities, cities and individual skyscrapers of the future are
designed and constructed. Is this a model for sustainable urban
life?

Look out for further cases on China's urbanization and city
development here at DAC Sustainable Cities.

Meet leading Danish and international architects and professionals, create potential networks and acquire important knowledge about the architectural, construction and innovative industries though seminars, publications and case studies.

THE BEST VIEW OVER COPENHAGEN HARBOUR

UNIQUE LOCATION FOR MEETINGS AND
CONFERENCES

We provide professional conference facilities and you will have the
opportunity to visit our changing exhibitions, and enjoy a light
lunch or a cup of coffee and a cake in our café on the first
floor.

TEACHING ARCHITECTURE

We offer courses for different age groups in connection with
Danish Architecture Centre's temporary exhibitions. The activities
are suited to varying target groups depending on the type of
exhibition and wherever possible the courses include hands-on
activities for children. The courses can also be conducted in
English.